How Physical Textbooks Complement Your Long-Term Digital Strategy
At Valore Campus, we believe that the best strategy for higher education isn’t physical or digital, it's both ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. In this brief article we'll try to articulate what underpins our belief.
There’s a common assumption in the industry that “students want everything on a screen.” The reality? Our experience running campus stores across the country says otherwise.
Time and again, students walk up to the counter asking for a printed textbook even if a digital version is available. Why?
It’s not just students. Faculty often have teaching styles built around physical course materials. This comes in the form of holding up a book in class, referencing a specific page, or guiding students through an annotated chapter.
When we remove the option for print, we inadvertently limit how faculty can teach. Our philosophy is simple: let educators teach the way they teach best.
Some see print as a threat to digital adoption. We see it as a bridge. A strong print offering builds trust with students and faculty, which makes them more receptive to integrating digital tools over time.
For example:
By offering both formats, campuses can meet learners where they are without forcing them into a one-size-fits-all model.
Housing two million books in a single facility isn’t just about volume; it’s about readiness. Our warehouse allows us to:
This infrastructure means that when a campus decides to keep physical books in the mix, we can deliver at scale and on time.
At the heart of our approach is a simple truth: students and faculty perform better when they can learn and teach with the tools that work for them. For some, that’s digital content. For others, it’s a well-worn hardcover with dog-eared pages.
By keeping print alive alongside digital, campuses aren’t resisting change, they’re enabling choice. And that choice is what drives student success.
Final Thought: The conversation in higher education doesn’t have to be about choosing between the past and the future. It can be about building a bridge between them. In our case, that bridge happens to be made of two million books.
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Three Fun Facts About Our Book Warehouse
Our facility spans the equivalent of 4 football fields.
We can ship to any U.S. campus in as little as 48 hours.
We run one of the largest textbook rental programs in the country, reaching students on nearly every campus in the U.S.
Study on,
Alan
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Alan Martin
VP Sales, Valore Campus